sente to me one of hys ministers he in the name and place of God hathe declared to me the forgyuenes of my synnes and hath baptised me in the assurance of the same Wherfore I doubte not but that my synnes be forgyuen and that I am made the sonne heire of God Thus good children you ought generally in all temptations to fortifie youre fayth and to comforte your selfes with the authoritie of Goddes word but specially you shall learne this also that oure Lorde Iesus Christe dyd entende by this authoritie of the Kayes to comforte the troubled consciences of them that after their baptisme do fall in to haynous offences For it is not so easye a thyng to rise agayn from synne as the mad and blynde worlde doeth thynke but when the deuel and oure faith shall skyrmishe together then in those straites and troubles of cōscience we haue nede of the helpe of some trewe minister of y e churche whych as it were in our swonynge maye lyft vs vp wyth the wourde of God comforte and refreshe vs. As the wyse kyng Salomon doth declare by thys sentence Wo to that man whyche is alone for when he falleth he hath no mā to lyft hym vp agayn And oure Lorde Iesus Christe doeth speake so often tymes in the gospel of the authoritie of the kayes and hathe added so great promyses to the same that it may wel appere by the earnestnes of Christes wourdes how careful he was for troubled consciences and how fatherly an effection he had to comforte thesame Wherof it vndoutedly foloweth y t we haue great nede of thys comforte and that it is moche to be estemed and set by For first of al our sauiour Christ before he gaue these kayes ī dede he promysed to Peter y t he would gyue them saying I wyl gyue to the the kayes of the kyngdome of heauen What so euer thou shalt bynde vpon earth shalbe bounde in heauen and what so euer thou shall louse vpon earth shalbe also loused in heauen Secondarelye Christe doeth teache vs howe we shall vse these kayes both in open and in secrete synnes Of the vse of the kayes in opē synnes Christ speaketh these wourdes Yf thy brother trespace agaynst the go and tell hym hys faulte betwene him and the alone Yf he hear the thou hast wonne thy brother But yf he heare the not then take yet wyth the one or two that vpō the mouthe of two or thre wytnesses euery worde maye stande Yf he heare not them tell it vnto the cōgregacion Yf he heare not the cōgregation let hym be vnto the as an hethen and publican Uerely I saye vnto you what so euerye bynde on earth shalbe bounde in heauen And what so euer ye lose on earth shalbe loused in heauen And of the vse of the kayes in priuye and secrete synnes oure sauiour Christ hath taught vs by his awne dede and example For the mā that was sycke of the palsey Christ said thus Sonne cōceaue a stedfast fayth thy synnes be forgyuen the. And as touching byndyng of synnes he sayd to y e hard herted and stubburne Iewes Yf you were blinde you shulde haue no synne But nowe bycause you saye you see your synne abydeth styll that is to saye it is not forgyuen Thyrdlye oure Sauioure Christe after his resurrectiō gaue the kaies to his apostles as before he had promysed breathynge vpon theim and saying Receaue the holy gost whose synnes ye shall forgyue they are for gyuen Now forasmuche as oure sauioure Christe in gyuynge the keyes did promise vs so great cōforte dyd so dylygentlye teache the vse of them and dyd so faythfully and louyngly ordeyne and commende them and put theim as it wer into the handes of his apostles their successors we ought in no wyse to dyspyse this greate authoritie whiche God hath gyuen vnto men but thankefully to vse it For knowe this for a suertye good children that it is a very great offence against God lytle to care for hys great gyftes and benefites Therefore when we fal agayne to great synnes after that we are ones baptysed we oughte not to walke in a certē rechelesnes thynkyng that our synnes be forgyuen vs onely because God is merciful For this opinion or wauering imaginatiō is more weake and feble thē that in the feare and battaile of the conscience it is able to stande against the violent force and craftye assaultes of the deuel But in this fight betwene our cōscience the deuel our great trust and comforte is y e sure worde and worke of God whiche maye asserteyne vs that our synnes are forgyuen that is to say whan we obteyne forgyuenes of oure synnes and absolutiō of the ministers of the churche to whome Christ hath deliuered the kaies and hath promysed saying Whose synnes ye shall forgyue in earthe their synnes be forgyuen in heauen also And this also is to be reproued that some men whiche continue in manyfest and open synne and go not about to amende their lyfes yet they wil be counted christē mē and interpryse to receaue the same sacramētes that other do to come to y e churche to worship God and to praye with other Suche muste be warned of their fautes and yf they refuse to heare and amende then they ought to be excommunicate and put out of the christen cōgregation vntil they repente and amende their lyfes Lest by suche manifest sinne and euel examples other men might be prouoked to do the lyke and so at length many might be infected and the Christē religyon dispysed and euel spoken of as thoughe it wer the worst relygyon forasmuche as Christian men shoulde thā leade a shameful and vngodly lyfe And so by this meanes y e name of God and God himselfe might be blasphemed amonge the heathen people And althoughe those canons ordynances and rites whiche be agreable to the gospel and were ordeyned in tyme past to punyshe suche opē trāsgressors and malefactors are nowe in oure tyme almost vtterly abolyshed and taken awaye yet for this cause we ought not to dispise or cast awaye the authoritye vse of the kayes For they which presumptuously do cast away all pokes of ecclesiasticall discipline or chasticement do let that such kynde of correction whiche is agreable to the gospel maye not be restored againe shall haue without doubte God for their iudge But let vs praye our Lord Iesus Christ that as it hath pleased him to restore vnto vs his moste blessed worde and the true vnderstādyng of the same so also he wyll vouchesaue to rendre and sende agayne to vs these and suche lyke good and holsome ordinances agreable to his worde Now when a man after baptisme hath greuously synned and doubteth in his conscience whether he be in the fauour of God or no as oftentymes yt happeneth then it is harde for hym to trust to his awn bare imaginations thinking on this fashion I know y t I haue synned but yet I
may y e more assuredly beleue this both Christ himself rose from death and many saintes also w t hym Fourthely we must beleue euerlastyng lyfe Wherefore it foloweth in the Crede I beleue euerlastynge lyfe that is to saye I beleue that whā we shall ryse from death then we shall lyue euer with Christe in parfite holynes and iustice and in suche a gloriouse ioy as no toung can tell nor hart thincke And this treatise of the Crede we must end with this wourde Amen which is asmuche to saye as I beleue that al the articles of our beliefe before rehersed be very true and thereof I haue a sure faithe trust and confidence Therefore good children from the bottome of your hartes you must beleue in the holy gost whiche doth promyse vnto vs remission of our synnes by al y e true preachers ministers of goddes worde And he dothe also geue light to our hartes and myndes and moueth vs to beleue goddes worde and to put our faith and trust in hym And the same holy goost dothe dayly purifye sanctifye vs purge and clense vs from sinne and after this bodily death shall rayse vs agayne to euerlasting life And take this for a sure conclusion and doubt nothynge thereof that the holy goost as he hath begonne these thīges in vs so he will fynyshe thesame in vs yf we obey him and continue in faith vnto thēde of our liues For he y t cōtinueth vnto y e ende shal be saued And this is the summe and also the most plaine vnderstāding of this thirde parte of the Crede entreatyng of our sanctificatiō or halowing Wherefore good children marke well this lesson that when ye be demaunded howe vnderstande you the thirde parte of the Crede yee may answer thus I beleue y t neither by mās strength power or wysedome neyther by myne awne endeuour nor cōpasse of myn awne reason I am able to beleue in Iesus Christ or to come vnto hym But the holy goost did call me by the worde of y e gospell and with y e giftes of his grace he hath hitherto endowed me halowed me and in the true faith he hathe hitherto preserued and confirmed me this he hath not done only to me but also he calleth and gathereth togyther in the vnitye of one faith and one baptisme all the vniuersal churche that is here in earth and he halloweth kepeth and preserueth thesame in the true knowledge of Christ and faith in his promyses And in this churche he geueth free and general pardō to me and to al that beleue in him of al our synnes offences and trespasses and at the last day he shall rayse me and all other y t be deade and al that dyed in the true faithe of Iesus Christ he shall glorifye in the lyfe euerlastyng Therefore to the sayde holy gost that sanctefyeth vs with y e father that made and created vs and the sonne that redemed vs be geuen all honour and glorye world without ende Amen ¶ A generall preface to be rehersed in the begynnynge of euery sermon made vpon the Lordes prayer YE haue learned heretofore good childrē in y e Crede what we ought to beleue and in the ten cōmaūdemētes what we ought to do but we can neyther beleue nor do as we ought to do excepte the holy gost worke with in vs bothe a true faith also a dewe obedyence towardes God and his lawe For faith is the gyfte of God and all good thinges commeth from the father of lightes Therefore we must nedes aske and craue these benefites at his hande whiche only is the gyuer of theim For so Christ saieth that God the father wyll gyue to vs his children all thinges so that we sue to hym for theim And the prophet Dauyd saieth Cal vpon me in the daye of thy trouble and I shal deliuer the and thou shalt glorifye me Also our Sauioure Christ commaūdeth vs to do y e same sayng Aske and you shal haue seke and you shall fynde knocke and the dore shall be opened vnto you Now therfore seyng that we haue learned what we shoulde beleue and do it is most necessary for vs to cal for gods grace with most feruēt and ernest prayers that we may be able to performe y e thinge whiche we are bounde to do For our sauiour Christ hath promised vs that what soeuer we aske the father in his name he wyll gyue it vs. Also he saieth that what soeuer we aske yf we beleue we shal receaue y e same Wher is to be noted that yf we wyll obteyne oure requestes we must aske in y e name of Christ and also trust assuredly that for Christes sake our praiers shal be heard To aske in Christes name is to aske accordynge to his wil that is to say to aske y t which he hath commaunded Therefore when we praye we may saye thus O God our father and the father of our Lorde Iesu Christ which art in heuē I durst not of myne awn head be so bold to come vnto thy most highe and excellent maiestye to desyer any thyng of the but thy welbeloued sonne our Lord Iesus Christ hath commaūded me so to do and only in his name and at his commaūdemente am so bolde Therfore yf thou hear me y u hearest thy dearly beloued sonne oure Lorde Iesus Christ. And yf thou heare me not thē thou hearest not Iesus Christ him selfe who hath sent me to the and hath commaunded me to aske in his name Of this prayer made in fayth speaketh saincte Iohn in his epistle saying This trust we haue in God y t when we aske any thynge accordinge to his will he doth heare vs. Therefore we shoulde stedfastly beleue that God doth heare our prayer For he that beleueth not he shall obtayne nothynge And therefore Christe saith If you beleue you shall obtayne And to thentent that we should beleue surely thynke that we be herde he hath promysed to graunt what soeuer we aske in his name And agayne to thentent that we shuld knowe and be suer that we praye accordyng to his wil he hymselfe hath taught vs howe what we should praye and aske Therfore it is not in our lybertye whether we wil praie or not but by goddes commaundement we be boūde to praye as you haue hearde in the seconde commaundement Now therefore with all dilygence lerne good children y e holy prayer of y e Lord which y e greate doctour and our Lorde Iesus Christ taught vs hymselfe saying to his disciples Ye shall praye after this maner OUre father which art in heauē halowed be thy name Thy kyngdome come Thy wil be don in earth as it is in heauē Geue vs this day our daily bread And forgeue vs our trespaces as we forgeue them that trespace against vs. And suffre vs not to be led into temptacion But delyuer vs from euyl Amen This good children is the prayer of the Lorde
patiently suffre al dyseases aduersities whiche it shal please god to send you and than without dowte you shalbe saued Wherefore good childrē learne these thinges dilygentlye and when you be demaunded what is baptisme Thē you shal answer baptisme is not water alone but it is water inclosed and ioyned to the worde of God and to the couenaunte of Gods promyse And these be the wordes wherby our Lorde Iesus Christ did ordeine baptisme which be written in the last chapter of sainct Mathew Go and teache all nations baptisynge theym in the name of the father and the sonne and the holy ghost And when you shalbe asked what auayleth baptisme you shal answer Baptisme worketh forgyuenes of synne it delyuereth from the kyngdome of the deuel and from death giueth lyfe and euerlastyng saluation to all them that beleue these wordes of Christ promise of god which are wrytten in the laste chapter of sainct Marke his gospel He that wil beleue and be baptised shalbe saued But he that will not beleue shalbe damned Thirdly yf a man aske you how can water bryng to passe so greate thynges ye shall aunswer Uerely the water worketh not these thynges but the worde of God whych is ioyned to the water and fayth whiche dothe beleue the worde of God For without the worde of God water is water and not baptisme but when the worde of the lyuyng God is ioyned to the water then it is baptisme and water of wonderful holsomnes and the bath of regeneration through the holy gohst as saincte Paule writeth God saued vs by the bath of regeneratiō and renewyng of the holy ghost whom he powred vpon vs plenteously by Iesus Christ our sauiour that we beyng made rightuous by his grace maye be heyres of euerlastyng lyfe Fourthly Yf a mā aske you what doth the baptisynge in the water betoken aunswer ye it betokeneth that olde Adam with all synnes and euel desyers ought daylye to be kylled in vs by trewe contritiō and repentaunce that he may rise againe from death and after he is risen with Christ may be a new man a new creature and may liue euerlastyngly in God and before God in rightuousnes and holynes As saincte Paule wryteth saying All we y t are baptised are buried w t Christe in to death that as Christ rose agayne by the glorie of his father so we also should walke in newnes of lyfe Thus ye haue hearde good children what is ment by y e wordes of baptisme by the which we are borne again and made newe to euerlastynge lyfe Learne these thynges dilygentlye and thanke God who in Christ hath called you to be partakers of so large and ample benefites And expresse baptisme in your lyfe and baptisme shalbe the greatest comforte to you bothe in your lyfe tyme and also in youre death bed For by baptisme we be grafted into the death of Christe wherfore synne deathe or hell can not hurte vs but we shall ouercome all these thynges by fayth as Christe himselfe ouercame theym And so by this newe byrthe we shall enter into the kyngdome of God and lyfe euerlastynge The whiche God graunte vs all Amen ¶ A sermon of the authoritie of the Kayes THe holye Apostle sainct Paul good children in the tenth chapiter of hys epistle to the Romaynes wryteth on this fashion Who so euer shal cal vpon the name of y e lord shall be saued But how shal they call on hym on whom they beleue not How shal they beleue on him of whome they haue not hearde Howe shall they heare without a preacher Howe shal they preach expcept they be sente By the whiche wourdes saynct Paule doeth euidently declare vnto vs two lessons The fyrst is that it is necessary to our saluation to haue prechers and ministers of Goddes mooste holy worde to instructe vs in the true fayth and knowlege of God The seconde is that preachers must not runne to this hyghe honore before they be called therto but they muste be ordeyned and appoynted to this office and sent to vs by God For it is not possible to be saued or to please God without fayth no mā can truely beleue in God by his owne wytte for of oure selfes we knowe not what we shoulde beleue but we must nedes heare Gods woorde taught vs by other Agayne the teachers except thei be called and sent can not frutfully teache For the seede of Goddes wourde doeth neuer brynge forth fruyt onles the Lorde of the haruest do gyue increase and by hys holye spirite do wourke with the sower But God doeth not worke with the preacher whom he hathe not sente as saynct Paule sayeth Howe shall they preache yf they be not sent Wherfore it is requisite that preachers should be called and sent of god and they must preache according to the authoritie and commission of God graūted vnto them wherby they may strengthen mennes belefe and assure their consciences that God hath commaūded them to preache after this or that fashion For els euerie manne shoulde styll be in doubt and thinke after this sort Who knoweth whether thys be true whiche I heare the preacher saye who can tell whether God hath commaunded him to preach these thynges or no And in case he teacheth no thynge but truth yet I am not sure that God wyll wourke with me as the preacher promyseth Perchaunce these promises perteine to other and not to me These doubtes in the tyme of temptation might trouble mens myndes yf we were not assured that our Lorde Iesus Christ him selfe hathe both ordeyned and appointed ministers preachers to teache vs his holye wourde and to minister his sacramentes and also hath appoynted theym what they shall teache in his name and what they shall do vnto vs. Therfore he called them and sent them and gaue thē instructions what they should do and speake to vs in his name to the intente that we shoulde gyue sure credence vnto theyr wordes and beleue that god wyll worke with vs accordyng to his wordes by them spoken And he hath promised therfore y t what soeuer they shoulde bynde vpon earth shoulde be bounde in heauē whatsoeuer they shuld lose vpon earth shuld be losed in heauen also Wherfore good children to the intente you maye stedfastlye beleue all thinges whiche god by his ministers doeth teache and promise vnto you and so be saued by your fayth learne diligently I prai you by what wordes our lord Iesus Christ gaue this cōmissiō cōmaundemēt to his ministers reherse thē here worde for word that so you may print thē in your memories and recite them the better when you come home The wordes of Christ be these ¶ Our Lorde Iesus brethed on his Apostles sayd Receaue the holye gost whose synnes ye forgyue they are forgyuen vnto them And whose synnes you reserue they are reserued Now good childrē you shal employ your selfes not onely to reherse these wordes without boke but also to vnderstande
what our Lord Iesus Christ ment by them that when you shall be asked any question herein you maye make a dyrect answere and that also in tyme to come you maye be able to instruct your children in the same For what greater shame can ther be eyther in the sight of God or of man then to professe thi selfe to be a Christen mā yet to be ignorāt in what place of scripture and by what wordes Christ commaūded faith and forgyuenes of synnes to be preached Seing y t a Christē man ought to beleue nothyng as an article of his faith except he be assured that eyther it is gods cōmaundement or his worde Now good children that you maye the better vnderstande these wordes of our sauiour Christe you shall knowe y t our Lorde Iesus Christ whē he beganne to preache he ded cal and chose his twelue Apostils and afterwarde besydes those twelue he sent forth thre score and tenne dysciples and gaue thē authoritie to preach the gospel And a litle before his death and passiō he made his prayer to his heuenly father for theim for all those that shoulde beleue thorow their preaching As it is declared in the gospel of sainct Iohn Now it is not to be doubted but y t Christes praier was heard of his heauenly father wherefore it foloweth that as mani as beleued the preaching of Christes discyples were as surely saued as yf they had heard and beleued Christ hymselfe And after Christes assention the Apostelles gaue authoritie to other godly and holye men to minyster gods worde and chiefely in those places wher ther wer Christen mē alredy whiche lacked preachers and the Apostles theim selues could not longer abide with them For the Apostles dyd walke abrod into diuerse partes of the worlde and did studye to plant the gospel in many places Wherefore wher they founde godly men and mete to preache gods worde they layed their handes vpō them and gaue them the holy gost as they theimselues receaued of Christ the same holy gost to execute this office And they that were so ordeyned were in dede and also were called the ministers of God as the Apostles theimselues were as Paule sayeth vnto Tymothy And so the ministratiō of gods worde which our Lorde Iesus Christ hymselfe dyd first institute was deryued from the Apostles vnto other after theim by imposition of hādes and gyuynge the holy ghost from the Apostles tyme to our dayes And this was the consecration ordres vnction of the Apostles wherby they at the begynnynge made Byshopes and pryestes and this shall continewe in y e churche euen to the worldes ende And what soeuer rite or ceremonye hath ben added more than this commeth of mannes ordinaunce and policye and is not commaūded by goddes worde Wherefore good children you shal gyue due reuerence honour to the ministers of y e churche and shal not meanely or lyghtly esteme them in the executiō of their office but you shall take them for gods ministers and the messengers of our Lorde Iesus Christe For Christ himselfe saieth in y e gospel He that heareth you heareth me And he y t dyspiseth you dyspiseth me wherefore good children you shal stedfastly beleue al those thinges whiche suche ministers shall speake vnto you from the mouth and by the commaūdement of our Lorde Iesus Christ. And what soeuer they do to you as when they baptyse you when they gyue you absolution and dystribute to you the bodye and bloude of our Lord Iesus Christe these you shall so esteme as yf Christe hymselfe in his awne person dyd speake and minister vnto you For Christe hath commaunded his ministers to do this vnto you and he hymselfe althoughe you see him not with your bodily eyes is present with his ministers and worketh by the holy ghost in thadministration of his sacramentes And on the other syde you shall take good hede beware of false and priuye preachers whiche pryuely crepe into cities and preache in corners hauyng none authoritie nor being called to this office For Christe is not present with such prechers ▪ and therefore dothe not the holy gost worke by their preching but their worde is withoute fruite or profyt and they do great hurte in commen welthes For suche as be not called of God they no doubte of it do erre and sow abrode heresye and naughty doctrine And yet you shal not thinke good childrē that preachers whiche be lawfully called haue authoritie to do or teache what soeuer shal please thē But our Lord Iesus Christ hath gyuen them playne instructions what they ought to teache and do And yf thei teache or do any other thynge then is conteyned in their commission then it is of no force nor we ought not to regarde it And for this cause our sauioure Christ dyd breath into hys discyples and gaue them the holy gost For where the holy gost is ther he so worketh that he causeth vs to do those thynges whiche Christe hath commaunded And whā that is not done than the holy ghost is not there Wherefore all thynges whiche we shall so speake or do can take none effecte Now the summe of the commission whiche Christ gaue to his dysciples was this that they shoulde preache repentaunce and forgyuenes of synne in his name And he added therto bothe a promise a threatnyng saying He that wil beleue and be baptised shalbe saued But he that wil not beleue shall be damned Wherfore all thinges whiche the ministers of y e churche do saye or do to vs ought to be directed to this ende y t they maye lowse vs and declare vnto vs the forgyuenes of our synnes whē we truly repent and beleue in Christ. But when we do not repent vs of our synne and forsake the same or do not beleue the gospel then they ought to bind or reserue sinne and to declare vnto vs that yf we styl continew in sinne we shal be dampned for euer And when the minysters do thus execute their cōmission then they obey God whose synnes soeuer they forgyue in earth their synnes be forgyuen in heauen also And contrarye wyse whome soeuer they binde in earth their sinnes be boūde also in heauē But yf the ministers wolde interprise to do contrary to their cōmission that is to say to forgyue synnes to vnrepentaunte synners and vnbeleuers or to bynde their synnes and denye theim absolution that be repentaunte and truste in the mercye of God then they shoulde not do wel nor their acte shoulde be of any force but they shoulde deceaue themselues and other also And than shoulde that be true that Christ speaketh in the gospell When the blynde leadeth the blinde both fall into the diche But when the ministers do trulye execute their office you oughte good children to take great comforte and to confirme your faithe therby that you maye stedfastlye beleue and in all temptations answere your aduersarye the deuell after this maner God hathe